direction of food source . how honey bees communicate for food .

Distance of a food source

Food source distance When a food supply is very close to the hive (i.e., less than 50 metres away), a forager runs in a tight circle while dancing.

She might perform the dance again in the same spot or move elsewhere

another location

Bees engage in the Waggle Dance when food sources are more than 150 metres away.

out of the hive

A waggle dancer bee sprints straight ahead for a short distance.

returns to the starting location in a semicircle and repeats the straight

then completes a full circle by making a semicircle in the other direction.

 During the waggle dance, the honey be runs in a straight line while waggling her abdomen 

 The straight line indicates the direction of the food in relation to the sun 

 If the bee runs straight up the hive wall, then the foragers can find the food by flying towards the sun 

 If she runs straight down, then the foragers can find the food by flying away from the sun 

 In order to translate the direction information contained in the honeybee dance language, the angle of the waggle run with respect to gravity and the direction of the sun must be known.

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